$40 for Veuve Clicquot is a good deal. I actually like that one. I thought I didn't like Champagne, but I found that I don't like cheap sparkling wine masquerading as Champagne. However, one year I tried a bottle of the VC La Grande Dame (~$150). Good, but not three times better. Had more "sur lees" (toasty) character.

There was a lot of VC on the shelves last year at that price. I talked to the rep and he said they were "phasing" out that vintage for one that suits "American tastes" what ever that means. It was good just didn't wow me, and it may have been the year or the rep may have actually been correct.

I've tried and tried to be a wine person. There's a big difference when you go up in price- say $30 vs a $10-15 bottle of Cab. However, beer is where it's at for me. The Infinium sounds more interesting the more I think about it.

Logged

The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool. -Richard P. Feynman

Laws are spider-webs, which catch the little flies, but cannot hold the big ones. -Anacharsis

You probably don't really mean 'vintage' since Veuve Clicquot is non-vintage (NV) dated. It was the yellow label? Normally, I see it at about $50, so $40 is a good value.

I went through the same experience with sake. Thought it was crap until I tasted good stuff.

It's great if you know what you're doing and can instinctively pick great values, but with things like this I guess I'm like a normal American beer drinker. Find some things that work and go with them.

You can get good wines for $10-15 retail. You aren't going to get famous wines that can be aged for 20 years, but you can get some decent things to drink this week. I like Rhone Valley reds, myself. But I know I'm not going to get a good $10 Chateauneuf du Pape (also from Rhone). It's fun to try other fermentables and learn about them. Cross-training for judging, in my opinion. Any palate development is good for you.

I haven't tried Infinium, but it sounds a lot like Deus, which is beer made in the traditional method of champagne.

It's been years since I tried it, but my recollection is that I found it to be not worth the price. I believe it was at least $20 a bottle.

VC yellow label is an old standard. I believe you should be able to get it this time of year in the $32 price range. Perhaps I'm anchoring to prices from my youth. Regardless, you can get equal quality champagne for less but there's something about Veuve.

Personally, I've always enjoyed the yellow label more than the Grand Dame.

Good, but not three times better. Had more "sur lees" (toasty) character.

Honestly, this is why I switched from collecting wine to buying and making beer.

VC is good, but $40! and La Grande Dame (or Moet's Dom Perignon) $150! Ouch. - Gordon you called it, nothing validates that price except for collectability and exclusiveness. My problem with wine was that I treated it like baseball cards when I was a kid. I'd buy it but never want to drink it because then you didn't have it anymore.

Compare this to say a Russian River product,

I can get Supplication (my favorite) which has more flavor, structure, and complexity then the best wine. There's less variability year in and out. The brewers art is truely on display and real genious is in the bottle. On top of all that, the product is a fraction of the price. My greatest fear is that the rest of the world starts to realize what we here in the beer world already know and that starts to impact my ability to get my favorite beers.

GORDON: Also interested that you brought up sur lies (which for those that don't know) generally means aging on the yeast after fermentation is complete as opposed to racking off the yeast. Great Champagne and White Burgundy such as Montrachet use this technique to develope the creamy hazelnut richness Gordon noted. These complexities from sur lies aging have something to do with autolysis of the yeast (and I believe in some cases the reaction the yeast has with polyphenols from the oak barrells). In the beer world autolysis is a dirty word, but I wonder if there is a way to control it the way wine makers do?

Logged

James LordenBeer Drinker Beer Maker & Beer Judge

jaybeerman

This is a spoiler review so quit reading if you don't want to know what it's like. It's not too shabby and not even close to what I was expecting. Should have know since it follows the m,h,w,y rule. I'd say it's like a non-viscous Salvator (I know, wrong brewery) with med-high carbonation. Deep dark caramelized (fruits, the wife says citrus too) with a touch of peppery spice in the nose. It does indeed have a bit of a lighter body than the aroma would make you think but I'm sure the extra carbonation doesn't hurt. Nice apple skin and slight peach aftertaste. Not like Dues in any way; slightly less carbonation. Pretty good.

"The two brewers claim Infinium is the first new beer created under the German beer purity law, called the Reinheitsgebot, in more than 100 years. (Under the law, only four ingredients -- malt, hops, yeast, and water -- can be used to make beer.)"

WTH?! Am I not understanding their claim ( a distinct possibility) or are they claiming something that is comically outrageous?

Logged

jaybeerman

"The two brewers claim Infinium is the first new beer created under the German beer purity law, called the Reinheitsgebot, in more than 100 years. (Under the law, only four ingredients -- malt, hops, yeast, and water -- can be used to make beer.)"

WTH?! Am I not understanding their claim ( a distinct possibility) or are they claiming something that is comically outrageous?

This is the first NEW style created within the gpl in a good long while. The style to me was - higher alc, light doppel, with high carbonation.

New "style", I suppose that's at least debatable, then, and a not outrageous claim. I think there are plenty of categories in the BJCP guidelines made of beers utilising only malt, hops, yeast, and water that weren't around a century ago, though, so I'd still say it is probably false.

More than likely, a non-beer-savvy journalist for the Herald slightly misinterpreted or misrecorded their claim, is my thinking.

Logged

jaybeerman

New "style", I suppose that's at least debatable, then, and a not outrageous claim. I think there are plenty of categories in the BJCP guidelines made of beers utilising only malt, hops, yeast, and water that weren't around a century ago, though, so I'd still say it is probably false.

More than likely, a non-beer-savvy journalist for the Herald slightly misinterpreted or misrecorded their claim, is my thinking.

All the media stuff aside, this is a brilliantly crafted brew. You have to respect a brewery who puts out a unique and tasty brew in a 750 ml for only $13-ish when too much of the industry is putting out mediocre brews in bombers for $15-ish.